solely

[ sohl-lee ]

adverb

1. as the only one or ones:

   solely responsible.

2. exclusively or only:

   plants found solely in the tropics.

3. merely:

   She wanted solely to get out of the house for a while.

solely

/ ˈsəʊllɪ /

adverb

1. only; completely; entirely
2. without another or others; singly; alone
3. for one thing only

Word History and Origins

Origin of solely¹

First recorded in 1485–95; sole ¹ + -ly

Example Sentences

“This is a case of demonstrated incompetence. … She was obviously selected solely because she’s loyal to Trump.”

From Los Angeles Times

Certainly, hope is an important psychological motivator for many people, and relying solely on doom-and-gloom messaging could push some people into despondency.

From Salon

More than a fifth of dentists are thought to do solely private work.

From BBC

Later that year, state officials agreed to stop putting people in state hospitals solely because they have developmental disabilities.

From Salon

They did so by developing and training an artificial intelligence model capable of making a tailored selection of phages based solely on the genome of the targeted bacteria.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• completely
• entirely
• exclusively
• individually
• merely
• purely
• simply
• single-handedly
• totally
• wholly